We snagged these shots of Darryl Hubbard's west coast-based Pro Modified Camaro a few days ago. We are told this new machine, which was built by Jerry Bickel Race Cars could see some action on the NHRA tour as well as other select West Coast events. 

Scotty Cannon will be the first to admit there were many demons on his back when he left driving in the first decade of the 2000s, primarily for pain and health reasons. Almost two decades later, he's back with a greater passion than the one that fueled his six IHRA Pro Modified championships. Those hard-fought championships, which he made look easy at times, were the catalyst for his appointment as the first Pro Modified driver into the International Drag Racing Hall of Fame.

"I'd like to clear some things up," Cannon said on the CompetitionPlus Power Hour. "When I got hurt in '97, the year before I went to Australia, which was the year before I had Oakley, I was on a 14 or 15-hour flight within two weeks after surgery. I flew over there, and I raced. The whole time I was in Australia, my doctor didn't even know I was there. I was afraid to tell anybody, but looking back on it, I should have had more faith in my sponsors and just told them I couldn't race. I probably should have taken a year off and gotten better. That was one of the bad decisions I made."

The legendary Tim Wilkerson shares how he got started in the racing and engine building trade. The current NHRA Funny Car owner/driver shares some great stories from his long (and still going) career.

For more great engine tech, check out @EnginePerformanceExpo, which returns LIVE on YouTube on January 13th & 14th, 2023.

For more episodes of the Hidden Horsepower podcast, check out the full Hidden Horsepower playlist. https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLM

For more on Lake Speed Jr, check out @lakespeedjr.304

There are multiple types of stories in drag racing. Those you can tell, and those you shouldn’t. Then there are those you tell to win a trophy.

For almost a decade, some of drag racing’s greatest storytellers came together for a good old-fashioned yarn-spinning competition where the first liar almost always took the prize. The scary part about it was that the stories were accurate with some embellishments.

Over the next couple of weeks, we plan to bring you the best of these stories, some in word and some in video. - Editor

Marco Abruzzi has proved himself in the Sportsman ranks, winning national championships in NHRA’s Top Dragster in 2015 and in IHRA in Top Sportsman in 2003 and 2006, respectively.

Now, Abruzzi is slowly getting his daughter, Emily, 16, into the Sportsman ranks.

Last month, Emily attended the renowned Frank Hawley’s Drag Racing School in Gainesville, Fla., and received her Super Comp license.

The past year has brought an epiphany to Chip Lofton. 

He watched Justin Ashley, the rising Top Fuel star he has sponsored from the beginning, duke it out with eventual victor Brittany Force for the championship to the final day of the season. And he marveled at the Larry Morgan-built for the Pro Stock car that he and Mark Beaver field and Morgan drives. But what Lofton discovered in 2022 goes far beyond any dragstrip. The knowledge he has gained offers hope to individuals and families, possibly on a global scale. 

Chris Holbrook knew it. His son confirmed it. 

A third generation of the Holbrook Family will hit the NHRA tour this year as 20-year-old Del Holbrook will climb behind the wheel of his dad's Mustang as a part of the Factory Stock Showdown division. 

"I'm really excited," Del confirmed. "It's definitely a big jump from NMCA tomorrow series. It's a very intimidating prospect. The sense of competition is definitely higher than what I'm used to."

But Del isn't worried. As he sees it, Chris has prepared him for this moment all his life. 

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Valvetrain industry trailblazer Dan Jesel has passed. The family announced the passing via social media on January 11, 2023.

Jesel founded Jesel Valvetrain Innovation in 1980 with the finest valvetrain components available without compromise.

"Dan was a beloved father, a brilliant innovator, a generous employer, and respected member of the racing community," Jesel Valvetrain Innovation said in a prepared statement.

John Sears has been named the Director of Competition for the 2023 Drag Illustrated World Series of Pro Mod, race officials announced. Sears' years of expertise and knowledge to guide the highly-competitive invitational March 3-5, 2023, at Bradenton Motorsports Park, is what made him a natural selection by Drag Illustrated Founder and Creative Director Wes Buck and team.
 
"It takes an army to pull off an event of this magnitude, and that army needs leadership," said Buck. "John's reputation speaks for itself, and he's absolutely, positively the right man for the job when it comes to maintaining the integrity of the biggest, richest Pro Mod drag race in the history of the known universe."

Back in the 1970s, long before any of the Super class racing existed, sportsman drag racers sought an affordable style of racing where they could race heads-up, with no breakout and do so on a pounds-per-cubic inch basis similar to their class racing. Their wants eventually led to the creation of Super Modified, the original 10.5 tire form of racing.

Not so far removed from the 1974 U.S. Energy crisis, class racers, then the only option for national event sportsman racing, had begun to feel the sting of extreme operating costs. Many opted for the new craze of the time, bracket racing, while a good number remained true to their craft seeking creative ways to preserve the only kind of racing they knew.

As was the case with many of the good ideas of the era, the plan began on a scratch sheet of paper and through the support of a major magazine became reality.

Car Craft Magazine presented the Super Modified concept in their July 1974 issue.